With how crowded the wide receiver picture was looking for the San Francisco 49ers towards the end of this offseason, there were predictions the Niners might move on from veteran Demarcus Robinson.
It’s early in training camp, but the veteran is already proving he has a place on the roster.
The 49ers have had some early wide receiver injuries with Ricky Pearsall and Christian Kirk both having to miss some time. Naturally, one wonders who might step up to fill the void, and the answer so far has been Robinson.
Several of San Francisco's beat reporters noted how Robinson had a strong day on the practice field. He hauled in multiple passes from quarterback Brock Purdy.
That’s exactly what Robinson needed to do after he was a bit disappointing last season. The Niners signed him even though they knew he would miss the first few games of the regular season due to a suspension.
Demarcus Robinson's camp couldn't have gotten off to a better start
In 14 regular-season games, Robinson he had 22 catches for 276 yards and one touchdown. He had a big game in the playoffs against the Philadelphia Eagles by going off for 111 yards and a touchdown.
Maybe that performance unlocked what he is capable of in San Francisco’s offense.
Robinson has been in the NFL 10 seasons. Remarkably, he’s played in the playoffs every single year he’s been in the league, even though he’s played for four teams, so maybe if nothing else, he's a good luck charm for the squad.
He’s going to have stiff competition for playing time no matter what, though. Rookie De’Zhaun Stribling has drawn positive marks early on, and there are other young options like Jacob Cowing and Jordan Watkins he has to contend with.
It’s not going to be automatic Robinson makes the roster, but he’s that exact kind of experienced depth piece teams end up being very thankful they have over the course of a long season. With so many health concerns surrounding the top of the depth chart, namely Pearsall and Mike Evans, it would not be a shock if Robinson ends up getting a lot of playing time.
He seemed like a dark horse candidate to be a guy on the bubble, but if he can build upon this start he’s had in training camp, perhaps he will do more that just make the 53-man roster and could end up playing an important role on offense, especially with the precarious state of the wide receiver depth chart.
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